News Snapshot:
Taiwan on Thursday announced a record jump in defense spending for next year as the self-governing democracy eyes new fighter jets and anti-ship missiles to deter a Chinese military invasion. The Executive Yuan, Taiwan’s cabinet, proposed a record 13.9 percent increase in defense spending. When including a special fund for military hardware purchases, the total will be about $19.4 billion, or 2.4 percent of projected gross domestic product. The announcement did not include details of specific expected purchases. The rise from about 2.2 percent of GDP last year comes after China, which claims the islands of 23 million as part...
